My Third Great Grandmother was a Wise Woman

Doesn’t everyone dream of finding out something kind of cool about one of your ancestors? This finally happened to me the other day.

I was at my father’s house and he had brought out some old photo albums. As I slowly turned the pages, I enjoyed seeing the pictures of my dad as a child and teenager, as well as his young adulthood. There were pictures of my grandparents as a young couple, and then there were some even older ones. 

Being the history geek that I am, I took a great interest in some of the old photos. One photo in particular made me stop turning pages. It was of a middle-aged lady in a no nonsense 19th century dress. She sat with her hands clasped in her lap, a serious expression on her face. I peered closer at the photo and noticed the caption read:

Harriet Carrigan – midwife, herbalist and doctor

It was written in my grandmother’s handwriting, which didn’t surprise me. She took a great interest in geneaology during the last years of her life. She lived and worked in the North Carolina section of the Appalachian Mountains.

I wanted to know everything about this lady! As a die-hard fan of Outlander, I realized that my three times great grandmother must have been a lot like the character Claire. 

But there was something even more exciting about this – women who were herbalists and midwives in the past were often referred to as wise women.

Some might call them witches, but since my father’s side of the family was a long line of staunch Protestants, I am sure my ancestress might take offense at that term. It’s not seen as it is today – a strong, wise woman with the capability to bring about change in her environment. 

After making this discovery, I have been researching what the lives of the average woman in Appalachia was like around that time. Women like my ancestress were called Granny Women, and they were the ones people called upon when a midwife or a doctor was needed. It is entirely possible that my grandmother could have learned the medicinal use of herbs from her Cherokee neighbors, since my father’s side of the family settled there in the 1700’s and intermarried with some Cherokee people. 

These women were tough as nails. They handled not only the cooking, cleaning, and other household chores, but they would see to the care of livestock and tending their gardens. All of this with no running water, electricity, or modern medicine.  

In conclusion, this random discovery has piqued my interest in the lives of my ancestors and now I am reading everything I can get my hands on about the lives of women in Appalachian, both European and Cherokee. I am in awe of these strong women who managed to get through those hard times.